chapter 2

Josh and Dani saw the outline of a frantically waving Bree through the glowing windshield of their car as it pulled up to the curb.


“You dorks need a ride?” they heard Geoff drag from the driver’s seat.


Bree lept from the car to jump all over Dani. “You guys are finally here, oh my God! It is so nice to see you two! It’s been way too long!” Her blonde hair bounced as she hopped around. Josh simply flipped Geoff off as he feigned excitement from inside the car.


“Alright, kids!” Geoff shouted, “this is a no-park zone! Let’s save our hugs for home.”


As the party of four pulled away from Arrivals, Bree and Dani were lost in an excited exchange. Josh smacked Geoff on the cheek from the back seat. “Thanks for scooping us, pal. Appreciate it.”


“Wouldn’t have it any other way, dude.” Geoff responded. “We’re so happy you guys were finally able to visit. We’re gonna have a blast this week, just like the good old days.”


“Hopefully not exactly like the good old days,” Josh laughed, “hoping to get back home in one piece.”


“Well I hope you two brought your party shoes, we have lots of plans this week. Can’t wait to show you around. Speaking of, Bree and I have some snacks and drinks at the house ready if you guys want to come and hang for a bit first before you head to your rental. You guys interested?”


Josh tried breaking the ladies’ conversation. “Dani, cool if we head to their place first before we go to our place to unpack?”


“Oh, God, yes! I need a drink or two!”


“Wine me up bay-bay.” Bree added


“Love the sound of that, Dan.” Geoff smiled.


---

“And here we are, home sweet home.” Geoff declared as they pulled into the driveway.


“Oh my GOD! It is stunning, you guys!” Dani shrieked as she exited the car. She slid out of her flip flops and bounced across the lawn. “It feels so springy! And it looks like you’ve been working on that garden. Fucking beautiful. Ugh, we need to move here ASAP, Joshy.”


“It’s not so bad if you can handle low 80’s and sunny 300 days out of the year.” Geoff bragged as he headed towards the house. “Let’s head in and get the tour over with.”


Inside, Geoff and Bree walked Dani and Josh through their little home.


“And this has become my favorite room in the house,” Geoff proclaimed, approaching the kitchen. “I’m basically a chef now, no big deal or anything. It’s crazy how different our grocery stores are from our east.”


“He’s really not kidding,” Bree broke in, “sometimes you’d think he was cooking for a small family. We need to work on that part.”


“It’s become more of a hobby for me by this point, but if we get to eat lots of delicious food on the way, what’s wrong with that?” he asked, retrieving wine glasses from the cabinet.


“You of all people, the guy who lived on ramen and protein shakes in college, has become a master chef,” Josh played, “the west coast changed you, bro. You changed.”


“I’m a man of great taste, what can I say?” Geoff smiled as he passed the wine to his guests and fiance.


“We are so happy you guys are here, here’s to old friends.” Bree said raising her glass.


“To old friends,” they all agreed.


“So tonight,” Geoff continued after a sip, “figured you guys might be a little tired from the long flight, so we figured the four of us can go to our favorite taco joint. Super low-key. There’s a place a few minutes from here, right on the water, tons of variety of fish, toppings, you name it. Plus they’re big with local beers, so many tasty ones you gotta try. Our neighbor told us we had to go when we first moved in and I feel like I’m asking Bree to go at least once a week. We love the place.”

“You certainly love the place, G.” Bree broke in. “You’re going to turn into a taco.”


“So I figured we can hit that place up, have a nice early dinner, and let you guys hit the sack early to get ready for the rest of the week. Sound good?”


“Yes, love it! Can’t wait to live like a local.” Dani responded.


“Then it’s a plan. We’ll probably scoop you guys around 6:30 if that’s good.” Geoff put his hands on Josh’s shoulders as he walked by. “Let me grab some snacks.”


Geoff opened his pantry, revealing bags upon bags of open chips, pretzels, and the like. On the kitchen island, he spread out a few bags of various snacks with some dips from the fridge.


“Look at you, man, you really have become a foodie.” Josh noted.


“Well I had to make sure we had some snacks for the week in case we ended up hanging out here a lot.” Bree said. “No one’s going to go hungry this week, that’s for sure!”


Dani raised her eyebrows and smirked as she turned to Josh.